18 Spring 2025 | edibleseattle.com SHOP THE BULK AISLE AND BUY UGLY If your grocery store has a bulk aisle, it’s the perfect place to shop for ingredients that you don’t often use or of which you only need a small amount This saves you money and space in your cupboards since you’re only buying as much as you need. As you’re choosing produce, don’t fear a few blemishes and scarring on your fruits and vegetables. It’s perfectly normal and it saves these foods from being thrown away by the store later. Embrace the imperfections! Don’t Let Good Food Go Bad! Small changes make a big difference to reduce food waste Did you know more than 40% of food in the U.S. is never eaten? Instead, it hopefully ends up in our compost, but some of it certainly ends up in the trash. Even the smallest changes to our habits can reduce how much food goes to waste in our homes. YOUR FREEZER IS YOUR FRIEND So many things can be frozen for later use, and it’s a good idea to incorporate your freezer into your regular meal planning. Whether you’re freezing something you won’t be able to finish before it goes bad or saving leftovers for later, it’s a great way to keep things as fresh as possible. Plus, if you plan ahead, you can make large batches of certain meals, like lasagna or soups, and freeze some for a lazy dinner day when you don’t feel like cooking. It’s a good idea to freeze foods in portions, so you only thaw the amount you want to eat. Future you will thank you! AN EXPIRATION DATE BY ANY OTHER NAME A lot of food is wasted because it has passed the date on its expiration label. But “Use by” and “Best by” aren’t so much hard expiration dates, but recommendations for when a product is freshest. There are exceptions, like deli meats and unpasteurized products, but for many things, the best way to tell if a food or product is past its prime is by using your senses of sight and smell to determine if something needs to be sent to the compost. SMART STORAGE Knowing how your food should be stored will keep you from dredging vegetable sludge from the bottom of your crisper drawer. Get to know your fridge and store things accordingly—the door is a warmer spot, so not great for things like milk, but perfect for condiments, butter and easy-to-grab drinks. The bottom of your fridge is usually the coldest, so it’s good to keep meat and fish there, below other things like produce that could get contaminated. Other things—like keeping your bananas separate from your other fruits due to their ethylene gas that causes other fruits to ripen faster—are great to keep in mind as you unload your grocery haul. We like savethefood.com, which has lists of foods and recommendations for storing them. PLAN SOME MEALS AND MAKE A LIST You don’t need to jump in the deep end and plan out three square meals a day for your whole family for an entire week. Even planning two or three meals makes a difference. Start with some recipes on a regular rotation at your house, and make a list of what you need. A list prevents guesswork when you’re at the store, so you don’t end up with ingredients you don’t need. Consider as you make your list what ingredients can do doubleduty in other meals. Tortillas for both enchiladas and breakfast tacos? Don’t mind if we do.
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